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I think we can all remember one of last year's most popular titles on the market. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. After taking the conflict to modern times, what did they do for the next title? Back to WWII. "Ugh," I thought, "Isn't that getting old yet? Going through the same old missions, shooting the same old Nazis with the same old guns and the same old plot." Well lets just say that Call of Duty: World at War, would make an excellent finale to the WWII shooting genre. I'm going to warn you now, for there are going to spoilers.
*Story*
Half the game you play as Pvt. Miller in the Marine Core, who you find out at the beginning was a prisoner of war. A friendly squad saves you and you join them on their adventure through the various Japanese Territories in the Pacific. As you fight your way through history's first taste of guerrilla warfare you get to watch both your Cpt. and your Sgt. die. The other half, you play as Pvt. Petrenko of the Russian's Red Army. He's a convenient, "accidental" survivor of the Stalingrad massacre and so is his Sgt. Reznov, who just so happens to have a sniper rifle and full ammunition to give you. Oh yeah, and there's some third guy you play as on a mission where you work all the turrets on some bomber plane in the Pacific. But I don't care about him because there's no point in him being there. He has absolutely nothing to do with either story.
The American story is that of fear and anguish. Struggling through the Pacific only to see both your commanding officers die is a disheartening plot. But it has a nice ambiance to it. I enjoyed trudging through the woods, watching out for Tojo hiding in the bush, waiting for the right moment to jab his bayonet in my back. The characters came up a little short, however. I didn't feel much remorse when our Cpt. or Sgt. died because they're wasn't enough reason for me to.
The Russian half of the story (my favorite half mind you) is of anger and vengeance. Drag yourself from amongst your slaughtered brothers, brush a little blood off your coat, grab a rifle and start on the long road to Vendetta. Even though the only character you associate with in the Russian half is Reznov, he was much more enjoyable company and he saved my life three or four times. As I accompanied him through the German-captured territories I really felt his thirst for revenge. And I don't think I ever felt so moved by an ending (SPOILER ALERT) as when he let me raise the Russian flag.
*Gameplay*
Well... What can I say? Take the gameplay from CoD 4, turn back the clock a few decades or so and BANG! You've got CoD: WaW. Ok, so that's not entirely true. I think it had a nice variety of levels and some battles were much larger and explosive, but it was a rather similar variety to CoD 4. And they featured a level where you get to operate a tank, but if you ask me, it didn't really do anything for the game. I think I would have preferred to run through that level escorting other tanks. I also thought that level on the plane was pretty useless too. Sure, it was kind of fun, but it had nothing to do with the story. The only reason I could think for having these useless missions... can you say fan service?
*Multiplayer*
Now some have said that the multiplayer in CoD: WaW resembles CoD 4. Push that thought out your minds right now. It isn't like CoD 4, really it isn't. It IS CoD 4. It is the exact same, pain in the neck multiplayer that ticked me off in CoD 4. Now I really must say, it is fun at times. Unfortunately, luck plays a big factor (which no one else is willing to admit). And I'm the unluckiest guy to play the game. So I die, a lot, and find it pretty frustrating. So, I generally try to avoid playing it except on certain occasions when my blood pressure is nice and low.
*Final Thoughts*
It was a fun adventure while it lasted, but I don't think I'll be adding this number to my Christmas List after I return the rental.
Tanks for reading.
This is The Blade, signing off.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monday, August 4, 2008
Web Gaming #1: MUGEN
I thought every week I'd find a random webgame and play it so you, the reader, can know which games are good and which games are best to avoid.
This week: Elecbyte's "M.U.G.E.N."
M.U.G.E.N.
MUGEN is a freeware game which is the free equivalent to a collaborative version of "Street Fighter II" made by fans of everything from 'the Simpsons' to 'Ranma 1/2'
Despite many of the characters looking out of place next to their opponents, the game still works well usually when Peter Griffin is beating up a 3D Super Mario.
There are a large number of websites, like Mugenation which offer downloadable custom content, such as characters, stages, tutorials, and screenpacks. My version is rather bland except for my custom menu choices, such as "Kick Some Ass" instead of "Arcade mode" and "F*** Off" for "Exit".
All in all, it's a fun game that's worth the 2MB RAR/ZIP base file download (but so is Weezer's "Pork and Beans" and is a handy little timewaster. Oh yeah, and it has 2-player multiplayer. :3
FINAL SCORE:
M.U.G.E.N.
Developer: Elecbyte (base game, 2001)
Publisher: N/A
Pros: Good support for downloads, easy and customizable interface, large user and creator base, and ability for 2-player co-op as well as your average 'beat the other guy up' gameplay.
Cons: Sometimes hard to share a keyboard (does feature joystick and PC gamepad compatability however) and no preloaded music, one preloaded character (Kung Fu Man) and 2 preloaded stages.
Overall Score: 8 out of 10.
This week: Elecbyte's "M.U.G.E.N."
M.U.G.E.N.
The engine allows anyone to create characters, background stages and other game objects through interpreted text files, graphics, and sound compilations. It supports various types of audio formats such as MP3 and MIDI initially, although it can be configured to play various audio formats via Winamp plugins, such as ADX and OGG, as background music during gameplay or at other points such as an introduction or the select screen. The engine allows for most of the same type of functionality found in most any commercial 2D fighting games, up to and including close recreation of those games' characters and gameplay. While the engine is set up primarily for fighting game development, several other game types have been developed using it, including shooter and platformer style games.
~Wikipedia Entry on MUGEN
MUGEN is a freeware game which is the free equivalent to a collaborative version of "Street Fighter II" made by fans of everything from 'the Simpsons' to 'Ranma 1/2'
Despite many of the characters looking out of place next to their opponents, the game still works well usually when Peter Griffin is beating up a 3D Super Mario.
There are a large number of websites, like Mugenation which offer downloadable custom content, such as characters, stages, tutorials, and screenpacks. My version is rather bland except for my custom menu choices, such as "Kick Some Ass" instead of "Arcade mode" and "F*** Off" for "Exit".
All in all, it's a fun game that's worth the 2MB RAR/ZIP base file download (but so is Weezer's "Pork and Beans" and is a handy little timewaster. Oh yeah, and it has 2-player multiplayer. :3
FINAL SCORE:
M.U.G.E.N.
Developer: Elecbyte (base game, 2001)
Publisher: N/A
Pros: Good support for downloads, easy and customizable interface, large user and creator base, and ability for 2-player co-op as well as your average 'beat the other guy up' gameplay.
Cons: Sometimes hard to share a keyboard (does feature joystick and PC gamepad compatability however) and no preloaded music, one preloaded character (Kung Fu Man) and 2 preloaded stages.
Overall Score: 8 out of 10.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Only Slightly Human
So I recently played the demo for an upcoming game called Too Human. If you haven't played it or you just didn't pay enough attention, Too Human is a hack, slash and shoot RPG (I'll get in to that later) where Norse Mythology is 100% real, but with a heavy sci-fi over-coating. There's really more machine than man, which makes the name kind of ironic. If you don't know about Norse Mythology, well... look it up. And the reasons I call it an RPG: You play a hero, one of the many usual classes and you spend all your time killing to gain experience and new gear, you gain exp. to level up and you level up to use better gear. This has RPG written all over it.
Gameplay: You only get to play as the default warrior in the demo, complete with a sword and two pistols to start with. You can get more gear by killing and completing certain important tasks. The fighting was very fun. Ripping through an onslaught of enemy bots, slashing and blasting them up. Lots of fun to be had in that. But then I got to the first boss. First I had to destroy his shielding before I got to see his real health bar. Then I spent ten minutes hacking, slashing and shooting him, only getting about halfway through his bar when some one in my squad said to find a weak spot. "Ohhhhh. THAT'S what I'm supposed to do." I aimed for the most obvious one: his back. I was right. I jumped on to his back and for some reason I had to wait until after he tried shake me off before I could strike. If you ask me a SMART warrior would kill a giant bot that just took out half his squad in thirty seconds as soon as he got the chance. But that's just me. Of course I died a few times in the demo. Dying always sucks in video games. This is the one exception I've seen. When you die, everything moves in slow-motion, beautiful, tear-jerking music plays, a golden light shines from the heavens and a Valkyrie comes down to take you to Valhalla: the eternal resting place of all warriors. Truly an awe-inspiring sight.
To end my thoughts: It was fun and very cool. And I would definitely recommend you check out.
Thanks for reading. This is The Blade, signing off.
Gameplay: You only get to play as the default warrior in the demo, complete with a sword and two pistols to start with. You can get more gear by killing and completing certain important tasks. The fighting was very fun. Ripping through an onslaught of enemy bots, slashing and blasting them up. Lots of fun to be had in that. But then I got to the first boss. First I had to destroy his shielding before I got to see his real health bar. Then I spent ten minutes hacking, slashing and shooting him, only getting about halfway through his bar when some one in my squad said to find a weak spot. "Ohhhhh. THAT'S what I'm supposed to do." I aimed for the most obvious one: his back. I was right. I jumped on to his back and for some reason I had to wait until after he tried shake me off before I could strike. If you ask me a SMART warrior would kill a giant bot that just took out half his squad in thirty seconds as soon as he got the chance. But that's just me. Of course I died a few times in the demo. Dying always sucks in video games. This is the one exception I've seen. When you die, everything moves in slow-motion, beautiful, tear-jerking music plays, a golden light shines from the heavens and a Valkyrie comes down to take you to Valhalla: the eternal resting place of all warriors. Truly an awe-inspiring sight.
To end my thoughts: It was fun and very cool. And I would definitely recommend you check out.
Thanks for reading. This is The Blade, signing off.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
I have nothing much to say about this one so let's just dive on in.
Campaign: Or should I say lack of? All the Campaign missions are 3-step objective games with 20 minute time limits. All of which can be played as the humans or the aliens. Both sides however are practically the same with very little variation aside from name. The classes consist of Soldier, Engineer, Covert Ops(aka sniper) and Field Ops. Each class has it's own weapon and equipment setup. The interface of which is very user friendly, having weapons on the right bumper and equipment on the left. Not only does each class have their own setup but you can also change your primary weapon. For example, if you're an engineer, you can choose between the rifle and the shotgun. The campaign was fun over all, but very short. I clocked it at a mere four and a half hours on medium. Very short.
Instant Action: Quake Wars has an interesting feature called instant action (reminds me of Star Wars Battlefront) where you can go on a mission alone or bring some friends into a bot match. Here's the only problem. Literally all the missions in the Instant Action are the EXACT same ones as the Campaign missions. And the campaign didn't even have any cut scenes. Not really much of a Campaign now is it?
Multiplayer: All the missions from Instant Action and the Campaign. But online with other people. So things are going to be a little more dynamic.
Final thoughts: I don't really know what to rate it, but I would recommend it. It's a very fun game. I just have one question. What's the point of even having a Campaign without variation from Instant Action and Multiplayer and no cut scenes?
Thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
Campaign: Or should I say lack of? All the Campaign missions are 3-step objective games with 20 minute time limits. All of which can be played as the humans or the aliens. Both sides however are practically the same with very little variation aside from name. The classes consist of Soldier, Engineer, Covert Ops(aka sniper) and Field Ops. Each class has it's own weapon and equipment setup. The interface of which is very user friendly, having weapons on the right bumper and equipment on the left. Not only does each class have their own setup but you can also change your primary weapon. For example, if you're an engineer, you can choose between the rifle and the shotgun. The campaign was fun over all, but very short. I clocked it at a mere four and a half hours on medium. Very short.
Instant Action: Quake Wars has an interesting feature called instant action (reminds me of Star Wars Battlefront) where you can go on a mission alone or bring some friends into a bot match. Here's the only problem. Literally all the missions in the Instant Action are the EXACT same ones as the Campaign missions. And the campaign didn't even have any cut scenes. Not really much of a Campaign now is it?
Multiplayer: All the missions from Instant Action and the Campaign. But online with other people. So things are going to be a little more dynamic.
Final thoughts: I don't really know what to rate it, but I would recommend it. It's a very fun game. I just have one question. What's the point of even having a Campaign without variation from Instant Action and Multiplayer and no cut scenes?
Thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
One is the loneliest number.
Two can be as bad as one, but it's perfect for EA's Army of Two. Let me start by saying that trailers and commercials failed to excite me in any way. So I really wasn't looking forward to this one but I decided to give it a try anyway. You have been forewarned: Spoilers ahead.
Campaign: In the campaign you play as either Elliot Salem or Tyson Rios. I played as Salem. You two start as a couple of army rangers in training. In training you will learn every single aspect of gameplay mechanics for the rest of the game. After training you're sent off to fight in the war in Simole. There you meet Clyde, who is a real prick. And right after you kill his bounty for him, while he sat back and watched, he takes all the credit and money. What a prick. Then you get picked up by some company called SSC who hire you as a pair of contractors. You go through quite a few wars and missions only to find out SSC was helping the enemy all along. They set you up to accidentally kill a U.S. senator. You fight back, clear your names and kill SSC leader, Dalton, and his little lackey, Clyde. I recommend you play on medium or high, because low is absolutely insulting as to how easy it is. Even with the weakest weapon configuration I could come up with, the enemies were still just dropping like flies. I like how you can change around your weapons in the middle of the mission. It makes experimenting with weapons easy. It was an overall fun campaign. If you can though, play with a friend. The AI of your partner can be pretty stupid. A lot of times I got downed he either stood there in enemy fire, or he dragged us both into it.
Versus: In versus mode two teams of contractors are both after the same objectives. You fight not only the enemy team, but also some NPC's like in the campaign. The goal is to gain as much money as you can by the end of the match. You get money by killing NPC's, the enemy team and most of all, completing objectives. You can find these odd dispensers where you can use some of your money to buy weapons and armor. Just save some to stay ahead of the enemy team. Oh, and spawn-killing is extremely occasional.
Final Thoughts: I liked it and I would definitely recommend it if you like action. There are a lot of jokes that Rios and Salem are gay for each other. I really don't get a gay vibe from them... most of the time anyways. There were a few things hinting towards that. Once I did the appreciation thing right after we slaughtered a bunch of enemies and Rios said, "Salem, Salem, Salem" in a very musical tone. My reaction: >_< Please stop talking now. My over-all score, 9 out of 10.
Thanks for reading. This is The Blade, signing off.
Campaign: In the campaign you play as either Elliot Salem or Tyson Rios. I played as Salem. You two start as a couple of army rangers in training. In training you will learn every single aspect of gameplay mechanics for the rest of the game. After training you're sent off to fight in the war in Simole. There you meet Clyde, who is a real prick. And right after you kill his bounty for him, while he sat back and watched, he takes all the credit and money. What a prick. Then you get picked up by some company called SSC who hire you as a pair of contractors. You go through quite a few wars and missions only to find out SSC was helping the enemy all along. They set you up to accidentally kill a U.S. senator. You fight back, clear your names and kill SSC leader, Dalton, and his little lackey, Clyde. I recommend you play on medium or high, because low is absolutely insulting as to how easy it is. Even with the weakest weapon configuration I could come up with, the enemies were still just dropping like flies. I like how you can change around your weapons in the middle of the mission. It makes experimenting with weapons easy. It was an overall fun campaign. If you can though, play with a friend. The AI of your partner can be pretty stupid. A lot of times I got downed he either stood there in enemy fire, or he dragged us both into it.
Versus: In versus mode two teams of contractors are both after the same objectives. You fight not only the enemy team, but also some NPC's like in the campaign. The goal is to gain as much money as you can by the end of the match. You get money by killing NPC's, the enemy team and most of all, completing objectives. You can find these odd dispensers where you can use some of your money to buy weapons and armor. Just save some to stay ahead of the enemy team. Oh, and spawn-killing is extremely occasional.
Final Thoughts: I liked it and I would definitely recommend it if you like action. There are a lot of jokes that Rios and Salem are gay for each other. I really don't get a gay vibe from them... most of the time anyways. There were a few things hinting towards that. Once I did the appreciation thing right after we slaughtered a bunch of enemies and Rios said, "Salem, Salem, Salem" in a very musical tone. My reaction: >_< Please stop talking now. My over-all score, 9 out of 10.
Thanks for reading. This is The Blade, signing off.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
The Sims: Castaway and More
My birthday was last Thursday (No, the LITERAL last Thursday, not the one on meme forums like 4chan and the bigot-owned Encyclopedia Dramatica) and I received a total of $60 plus a new Wiimote for my Wii. 2 things were bought with this money: The Sims 2: Castaway for the Wii and a sonic screwdriver from ThinkGeek.com (read my latest post at my personal blog).
The Sims 2: Castaway is an offshoot title of the main Sims 2 game (I own the GameCube copy). Castaway itself is the stripped-down console port of an existing Sims 2 expansion pack called "Castaway Stories". Due to the fact modern consoles can not run actual expansion packs, game developers are forced to create entirely new games set in the world of main one, the Sims series and Guitar Hero II to be precise targets of this. While not bad for them, it squeezes the cash from us, because no one except for a complete retard (eg: me) would shell out $50 bucks for an expansion pack for a console game, because all it ever is is the same game with a few new added bells and whistles. In some games, things are lost. In console version of the Sims 2, there were 2 play modes: a story/career mode featuring your created sim (and your mate's sim if you did 2 player) going through completing objectives to fill his/her life meter because if they don't, they'll become some drugged-up parent in the suburbs wondering "WTF just happened?!", and a free-play mode reminiscent of the first Sims game for the consoles (my console at the time was a PS2). I didn't see it coming, but retrospectively it was to be expected, but all the children were somehow missing from the Sims 2, both in story and free-play mode. Well, that brought out the acne-ridden Hulk so to speak and I was about ready to twirl a tank Super Mario-style into Maxis' head offices, but luckily someone slipped a sedative into my Mountain Dew Code Red and I calmed town.
Anyway, the Sims 2: Pets did the same thing, only with story-mode and free-play clumsily mixed together. If you took care of your cat/dog/sim/thing then more people moved into the neighborhood (including Hilary Duff and her pampered pooch, whom by brother locked in a room by herself while the dog destroyed the Duff Mansion just for the fun of it). Now the Sims 2: Castaway throws free-play totally out of the window in-favour of a psydo-story driven game. Your sim, in my case my character, boy genius Gavin DeMilo, is on a boat with as many as six people on it. Everyone gets totally sloshed and starts singing kareoke (by the looks on their faces, it looks as if Gavin attempted "Bohemian Rhapsody" all by his lonesome without accompaniment). The good ship Simplicity shakes about and while fishing, they all fall off of the boat (for some reason, your fishing rod is not in your inventory at the game's start, making you to have to build one from bamboo and vines). Gav washes up on the first island, called Shipwreck Island, and begins foraging for himself, befriending chimps who gather for him and making shelter and inventing useful items like torches and axes and girls made out of sand (they won't nag for you to come to their mother's unless you build one).
In time, you can build a one-man raft to travel to Airplane Island, the second island were your crew (if there is any) resides. You assemble a rag-tag tribe of sorts and all of them can pick from 4 tribe duties: cook, fish, forage for supplies, and forage for food.
....
And that's it. That's as far as I've gotten.
SO, let's talk about the Sims movie, shall we?
As I told you before, Fox Studios has bought the rights to a film based on Will Wright's brainchild, the Sims, with John Davis producing and ol' who-cares directing. According to my sources, the film will be a drama. The main character finds out that Pleasantville, the first neighborhood on the Sims 2, is actually part of a massively played video game. The game also features characters from the Sims titles, including the Goth and Newbie familes, and Don Lathario from the Sims 2. While it doesn't seem interesting, I like to see that a game-movie finally has them realize they're in a game.
FINAL SCORE:
The Sims 2: Castaway (Wii, PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, PC [titled Castaway Stories and is an expansion pack])
Pros: In-jokes to previous games, fun dialouge, unique idea (came out before the Lost video game), good music
Cons: Difficult camera angles, annoying NPCs, crazy goals.
Score:
7.5 Out Of 10
The Sims 2: Castaway is an offshoot title of the main Sims 2 game (I own the GameCube copy). Castaway itself is the stripped-down console port of an existing Sims 2 expansion pack called "Castaway Stories". Due to the fact modern consoles can not run actual expansion packs, game developers are forced to create entirely new games set in the world of main one, the Sims series and Guitar Hero II to be precise targets of this. While not bad for them, it squeezes the cash from us, because no one except for a complete retard (eg: me) would shell out $50 bucks for an expansion pack for a console game, because all it ever is is the same game with a few new added bells and whistles. In some games, things are lost. In console version of the Sims 2, there were 2 play modes: a story/career mode featuring your created sim (and your mate's sim if you did 2 player) going through completing objectives to fill his/her life meter because if they don't, they'll become some drugged-up parent in the suburbs wondering "WTF just happened?!", and a free-play mode reminiscent of the first Sims game for the consoles (my console at the time was a PS2). I didn't see it coming, but retrospectively it was to be expected, but all the children were somehow missing from the Sims 2, both in story and free-play mode. Well, that brought out the acne-ridden Hulk so to speak and I was about ready to twirl a tank Super Mario-style into Maxis' head offices, but luckily someone slipped a sedative into my Mountain Dew Code Red and I calmed town.
Anyway, the Sims 2: Pets did the same thing, only with story-mode and free-play clumsily mixed together. If you took care of your cat/dog/sim/thing then more people moved into the neighborhood (including Hilary Duff and her pampered pooch, whom by brother locked in a room by herself while the dog destroyed the Duff Mansion just for the fun of it). Now the Sims 2: Castaway throws free-play totally out of the window in-favour of a psydo-story driven game. Your sim, in my case my character, boy genius Gavin DeMilo, is on a boat with as many as six people on it. Everyone gets totally sloshed and starts singing kareoke (by the looks on their faces, it looks as if Gavin attempted "Bohemian Rhapsody" all by his lonesome without accompaniment). The good ship Simplicity shakes about and while fishing, they all fall off of the boat (for some reason, your fishing rod is not in your inventory at the game's start, making you to have to build one from bamboo and vines). Gav washes up on the first island, called Shipwreck Island, and begins foraging for himself, befriending chimps who gather for him and making shelter and inventing useful items like torches and axes and girls made out of sand (they won't nag for you to come to their mother's unless you build one).
In time, you can build a one-man raft to travel to Airplane Island, the second island were your crew (if there is any) resides. You assemble a rag-tag tribe of sorts and all of them can pick from 4 tribe duties: cook, fish, forage for supplies, and forage for food.
....
And that's it. That's as far as I've gotten.
SO, let's talk about the Sims movie, shall we?
As I told you before, Fox Studios has bought the rights to a film based on Will Wright's brainchild, the Sims, with John Davis producing and ol' who-cares directing. According to my sources, the film will be a drama. The main character finds out that Pleasantville, the first neighborhood on the Sims 2, is actually part of a massively played video game. The game also features characters from the Sims titles, including the Goth and Newbie familes, and Don Lathario from the Sims 2. While it doesn't seem interesting, I like to see that a game-movie finally has them realize they're in a game.
FINAL SCORE:
The Sims 2: Castaway (Wii, PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, PC [titled Castaway Stories and is an expansion pack])
Pros: In-jokes to previous games, fun dialouge, unique idea (came out before the Lost video game), good music
Cons: Difficult camera angles, annoying NPCs, crazy goals.
Score:
7.5 Out Of 10
Blogged with Flock
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
The story of Soap.
So, after about a month or so of hearing, "Halo 3 sucks all of the sudden for no other reason than Call of Duty 4 is better", I decided to rent it and try it for myself. Spoilers, there will be spoilers.
*Campaign* Let me just start off by saying that it's definitely better than I thought it would be. My original thoughts were that it would constantly repeat the boring "Duck for cover but pop up for a split-second to shoot something" formula. It was actually very lively and fun. It wasn't boring for even the slightest second. You switch a few times between the British SAS soldier, Soap (what kind of name is that?) and the US Marine Sgt. Jacskon. Oh, and you get to see through the eyes of some kidnapped soldier right before he gets a bullet through the face on national TV and you also get to work some sort of cannon on the side of an aircraft. My point is that with all the perspective switching the game is always interesting. My favorites were of course Soap and Jackson. They actually get to interact with all the other characters of the game. At some point though Jackson dies and his marine buddies and the SAS squad that conveniently had Soap team up for a joint mission. Speaking of the characters, don't get too attached to them. They die in the end. I was just starting to like them and then came a car chase/ gun fight and they die while protecting me while I was injured. Then the credits have Griggs (a.k.a. one of the two black marines I saw in the whole game) rap in the end. I'm not quite sure what to say about that. And right after the credits there's an Epilogue Bonus Level which caught me off guard, scrambling for my controller as bullets starting whizzing by my head. Over all I liked the campaign. But it felt a little static. The AI don't really make that many different decisions and this just makes me feel like I'm doing the same thing over again.
*Multiplayer* The multiplayer is a lot of fun. But it's almost just as frustrating as it is fun. The spawn system is REALLY messed up. In half the games I played I get spawned in the near vicinity of an enemy who finds and kills me within about five seconds of being alive. A few times I even got spawned literally right in front of the enemy helicopter who proceeded to give me more than my daily recommended dose of bullets. Even more frustrating than that, I once got spawned (and I am NOT joking when I say this) two inches from a LIVE GRENADE! Next thing I know my jaw has dropped more than it should and I've lossed my controller. And in the midst of my shock and confusion the ever enjoyable kill-cam plays. The kill-cam is useful when you're left wondering, "How did he kill me?", but all other times it's just insulting. You take a shotgun blast to the face and the kill-cam chimes in, "Oh, by the way, here's how he killed you."
*Final Thoughts* Call of Duty 4 is an excellent game and definitely worth the 60 bucks. But I have to give it a 7 out of 10 because the spawn system is so frustrating. And if you remember I gave Halo 3 an 8 out of 10.
Thanks for reading. Blade signing off.
*Campaign* Let me just start off by saying that it's definitely better than I thought it would be. My original thoughts were that it would constantly repeat the boring "Duck for cover but pop up for a split-second to shoot something" formula. It was actually very lively and fun. It wasn't boring for even the slightest second. You switch a few times between the British SAS soldier, Soap (what kind of name is that?) and the US Marine Sgt. Jacskon. Oh, and you get to see through the eyes of some kidnapped soldier right before he gets a bullet through the face on national TV and you also get to work some sort of cannon on the side of an aircraft. My point is that with all the perspective switching the game is always interesting. My favorites were of course Soap and Jackson. They actually get to interact with all the other characters of the game. At some point though Jackson dies and his marine buddies and the SAS squad that conveniently had Soap team up for a joint mission. Speaking of the characters, don't get too attached to them. They die in the end. I was just starting to like them and then came a car chase/ gun fight and they die while protecting me while I was injured. Then the credits have Griggs (a.k.a. one of the two black marines I saw in the whole game) rap in the end. I'm not quite sure what to say about that. And right after the credits there's an Epilogue Bonus Level which caught me off guard, scrambling for my controller as bullets starting whizzing by my head. Over all I liked the campaign. But it felt a little static. The AI don't really make that many different decisions and this just makes me feel like I'm doing the same thing over again.
*Multiplayer* The multiplayer is a lot of fun. But it's almost just as frustrating as it is fun. The spawn system is REALLY messed up. In half the games I played I get spawned in the near vicinity of an enemy who finds and kills me within about five seconds of being alive. A few times I even got spawned literally right in front of the enemy helicopter who proceeded to give me more than my daily recommended dose of bullets. Even more frustrating than that, I once got spawned (and I am NOT joking when I say this) two inches from a LIVE GRENADE! Next thing I know my jaw has dropped more than it should and I've lossed my controller. And in the midst of my shock and confusion the ever enjoyable kill-cam plays. The kill-cam is useful when you're left wondering, "How did he kill me?", but all other times it's just insulting. You take a shotgun blast to the face and the kill-cam chimes in, "Oh, by the way, here's how he killed you."
*Final Thoughts* Call of Duty 4 is an excellent game and definitely worth the 60 bucks. But I have to give it a 7 out of 10 because the spawn system is so frustrating. And if you remember I gave Halo 3 an 8 out of 10.
Thanks for reading. Blade signing off.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Wii Come In Piice
Sorry for not posting in...ever, but I'm back with my review of the Nintendo Wii.
Now, I got the Wii, maybe a month ago. It came with one game, WiiSports, and one Wii remote, or "Wiimote". The first game we played was Bowling, and we had an incredible amount of fun. My grandparents and I quickly decided it was our favourite game on the system. Then we attempted Golf; much, much much harder, but was still sort of fun.
A couple of days later, my Grandmother went to GameStop and bought a new game, WiiPlay, that came with a free Wiimote and she also bought a second Nunchuck. WiiPlay was not as FUN as WiiSports, but some of the games were entertaining. Games included a shooting gallery (throwback to Duck Hunt on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), an update of Atari's "Tank", a sort of Neon Pong game, a Fishing simulation, and a game where you raced cows and maneuvered obstacles by jumping over them and hitting scarecrows for points. Plus, when you clicked on the Miis in the main menu, they moved depending on where you clicked. Clicking their face caused them to shake their heads, and clicking their arm made them wave to you. I'll let you find the rest on your own.
My grandmother is going to the local Hollywood Video store to rent some new games for consideration. If we like them, we'll by them from GameStop. If not, well, them's the breaks!
FINAL SCORES:
Wii Console: 9 out of 10. (Excellent!)
Pros: Unique controller, ability to play GameCube games without buying adapter, exellent graphics, better Internet support than previous Nintendo consoles.
Cons: Trouble controlling the Wiimote at times; not all games are good. We've only played 2 out of 5 from the Wii-Series.
WiiSports
Publisher: Nintendo
Score: 9.5/10
Pros: Fun games, great for parties or just hanging out with friends, great use of the Mii system, and good use of the Wiimote.
Cons: Some games are hard to control with the Wiimote, like putting in Golf (seems too sensitive)
WiiPlay
Publisher: Nintendo
Score: 8.5/10
Pros: Great graphics, fun games, great Easter Eggs.
Cons: Complicated controls on some games,
Now, I got the Wii, maybe a month ago. It came with one game, WiiSports, and one Wii remote, or "Wiimote". The first game we played was Bowling, and we had an incredible amount of fun. My grandparents and I quickly decided it was our favourite game on the system. Then we attempted Golf; much, much much harder, but was still sort of fun.
A couple of days later, my Grandmother went to GameStop and bought a new game, WiiPlay, that came with a free Wiimote and she also bought a second Nunchuck. WiiPlay was not as FUN as WiiSports, but some of the games were entertaining. Games included a shooting gallery (throwback to Duck Hunt on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), an update of Atari's "Tank", a sort of Neon Pong game, a Fishing simulation, and a game where you raced cows and maneuvered obstacles by jumping over them and hitting scarecrows for points. Plus, when you clicked on the Miis in the main menu, they moved depending on where you clicked. Clicking their face caused them to shake their heads, and clicking their arm made them wave to you. I'll let you find the rest on your own.
My grandmother is going to the local Hollywood Video store to rent some new games for consideration. If we like them, we'll by them from GameStop. If not, well, them's the breaks!
FINAL SCORES:
Wii Console: 9 out of 10. (Excellent!)
Pros: Unique controller, ability to play GameCube games without buying adapter, exellent graphics, better Internet support than previous Nintendo consoles.
Cons: Trouble controlling the Wiimote at times; not all games are good. We've only played 2 out of 5 from the Wii-Series.
WiiSports
Publisher: Nintendo
Score: 9.5/10
Pros: Fun games, great for parties or just hanging out with friends, great use of the Mii system, and good use of the Wiimote.
Cons: Some games are hard to control with the Wiimote, like putting in Golf (seems too sensitive)
WiiPlay
Publisher: Nintendo
Score: 8.5/10
Pros: Great graphics, fun games, great Easter Eggs.
Cons: Complicated controls on some games,
Blogged with Flock
Sunday, February 17, 2008
My parachute is stuck.
So now it's time to review Medal of Honor: Airborne.
Let's start with campaign... The campaign is pretty good. A wide array of combat situations. And it's pretty fun. Although the second to last level is just frustrating seeing as how there's about 50 snipers in rather obscure and hard to find places. And I'm not quite sure if the campaign is historicly accurate anymore. I don't seem to remember the nazis having a giant tower made of concrete and an elite branch of storm troopers that wore gas masks and carried around MMGs. Oh well. It's still a rather fun campaign.
Now onto the AI... Your friendly AI are just as useless as ever. I mean I know that not every soldier on the field can make smart decisions under pressure, but they can't be THIS stupid. I can't tell you how many times I've had a guy run in front of my gun as I'm firing and yell at me for it. The only time I ver see them get a kill is when they steal one from me. Seriously, the one and only use they have is being the occasional distraction when a tank rolls in. The enemy AI also realize how stupid your alies are and will, on the most part, shoot you alone.
Now about the weapons... There is one of every weapon on each side of the war. An SMG, an automatic rifle, a rifle, a sniper, and a rocket launcher. Pistols too but you can only use the German pistol when you play on the Axis side in multiplayer. The only weapon that isn't on both sides is the shotgun which of course belongs to the Americans. There are also three types of grenade: frag, stick and some other grenade with a name that I don't remember that's used for tanks. You must upgrade each and every one of these weapons three levels. But don't fret, you can upgrade at least one all the way in a mission if you use it enough. You just don't get a hold of rockets and tank grenades except for certain levels. For all the other weapons you pick it up and you then have access to it at the start of every mission from then on. All the weapons are pretty fun but I've got to admit, the campaign becomes almost insultingly easy once you get your hands on the shotgun. That thing obliterates just about everything. Everything except the gas masks. The first one I encountered (on easy difficulty mind you) took eight shells to the face at close range before he went down.
Best played without other people... I didn't think I'd like the multiplayer in the least. But it's actually pretty fun. I thought it would be duck, shoot, duck, shoot. But it's pretty lively. I just think it's unblanced. The odds just seemed to be stacked really high against the Germans. Most, if not all, of the American weapons are over powering to thier German counter parts. Not only that but the Americans parachute into the match just like in the campaign and can land just about any where (including next to the German spawn area) with a sniper or a rocket launcher and force the Germans to go down an extremely frustrating highway known as Spawnkill Junction. And THAT is not what we like to call fun. And some guy on XBox Live had the nerve to say that all is fair in love and war... Ok, 1: if that was love I'd hate to see war. And 2: last I checked this wasn't war, it was the multiplayer function of a video game. And I thought multiplayer was suppoesed to have both sides with an equal chance to win, leaving the challenge based on skill. And it takes zero skill to spawn kill.
Thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
Let's start with campaign... The campaign is pretty good. A wide array of combat situations. And it's pretty fun. Although the second to last level is just frustrating seeing as how there's about 50 snipers in rather obscure and hard to find places. And I'm not quite sure if the campaign is historicly accurate anymore. I don't seem to remember the nazis having a giant tower made of concrete and an elite branch of storm troopers that wore gas masks and carried around MMGs. Oh well. It's still a rather fun campaign.
Now onto the AI... Your friendly AI are just as useless as ever. I mean I know that not every soldier on the field can make smart decisions under pressure, but they can't be THIS stupid. I can't tell you how many times I've had a guy run in front of my gun as I'm firing and yell at me for it. The only time I ver see them get a kill is when they steal one from me. Seriously, the one and only use they have is being the occasional distraction when a tank rolls in. The enemy AI also realize how stupid your alies are and will, on the most part, shoot you alone.
Now about the weapons... There is one of every weapon on each side of the war. An SMG, an automatic rifle, a rifle, a sniper, and a rocket launcher. Pistols too but you can only use the German pistol when you play on the Axis side in multiplayer. The only weapon that isn't on both sides is the shotgun which of course belongs to the Americans. There are also three types of grenade: frag, stick and some other grenade with a name that I don't remember that's used for tanks. You must upgrade each and every one of these weapons three levels. But don't fret, you can upgrade at least one all the way in a mission if you use it enough. You just don't get a hold of rockets and tank grenades except for certain levels. For all the other weapons you pick it up and you then have access to it at the start of every mission from then on. All the weapons are pretty fun but I've got to admit, the campaign becomes almost insultingly easy once you get your hands on the shotgun. That thing obliterates just about everything. Everything except the gas masks. The first one I encountered (on easy difficulty mind you) took eight shells to the face at close range before he went down.
Best played without other people... I didn't think I'd like the multiplayer in the least. But it's actually pretty fun. I thought it would be duck, shoot, duck, shoot. But it's pretty lively. I just think it's unblanced. The odds just seemed to be stacked really high against the Germans. Most, if not all, of the American weapons are over powering to thier German counter parts. Not only that but the Americans parachute into the match just like in the campaign and can land just about any where (including next to the German spawn area) with a sniper or a rocket launcher and force the Germans to go down an extremely frustrating highway known as Spawnkill Junction. And THAT is not what we like to call fun. And some guy on XBox Live had the nerve to say that all is fair in love and war... Ok, 1: if that was love I'd hate to see war. And 2: last I checked this wasn't war, it was the multiplayer function of a video game. And I thought multiplayer was suppoesed to have both sides with an equal chance to win, leaving the challenge based on skill. And it takes zero skill to spawn kill.
Thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Tony Hawk's Massive Failure
Hey, all! Since Acs posted a new review, I thought I would too. The game is "Tony Hawk's Project 8" by Neversoft and published by the first independent game developer, Activision, for the PlayStation 2. While not exactly NEW, it is rather recent. The game is a departure from the past 3 games in the fact that, while there is a story ("Career") mode, it does not have cut scenes with your player and your skater has no voice. The game features one new feature, that being the "land the trick" function when in special mode, which is basically "Focus mode" from THUG 2 and THAW. The difference between "land the trick" and "focus" is that in "land the trick", your camera goes yellow and closes up on your board, and you can push different joystick directions to make your feet go a different way, doing a unique trick when you get the hang of it.
Other new things are new pros to skate as, such as "My Name Is Earl", "Underdog", and "Alvin and the Chipmunks" star Jason Lee, skating out of semi-retirement to help the player during the second level. Unfortunately, the game takes a major departure from previous Tony Hawk titles in the fact that you can only play as 2 characters in free play at the games beginning (Tony Hawk and the Custom Skater), as opposed to being able to play as every pro AND Custom Skater like all the others. Speaking of, the Customization is very small and you have to choose between 3 presets: Punk, Urban Youth/Thug, and an 8 year old kid...or a midget...
My sister had a major problem in THAW to where she couldn't play as a girl in Story Mode due to the kiss at the end. She was further infuriated by the fact that you couldn't even make a female skater PERIOD in the Create-A-Skater option in Project 8. Oh, sure, you could play as a female Realtor, but that was about it, and still you had to complete the second level to get her.
Many hallmarks of the series have been removed for no reason other than "realism", chiefly Create-A-Park, which was my second favourite thing after character creation. The create a trick function introduced in THUG has been taken out, as has the "FREAK OUT!/Board Throwing" moves from THUG 2 and THAW. As a teen with severe anger management problems, this really pissed me off. I did my own FREAK OUT! move and chucked the game case into the rubbish bin.
There are MANY worse games you can get than Project 8, but I find it to be severely disappointing. It has nothing in common from the past games other than being the second-latest in the Tony Hawk brand, the newest being Proving Ground for the Wii, 360, PlayStations 2 and 3. If I ever get my Wii and get to try Proving Ground, I'll let you know how it stacks up. My current favourite games in the brand are Tony Hawk's Undergrounds 1 and 2. As Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw said, "I could say it appeals to die hard (*dubbed over*) [TONY HAWK] fans only, but I can't really recommend it to them either". My advice to Neversoft is to not fix which isn't broken, I guess. The past 3 titles where HUGE successes, and fans clamored for more of the same, but you had to get all real like EA Games' "skate." and dumped your loyal (usually drunk) user base in favour of the die-hard skate enthusiasts who demand realism. Either return future games to form or axe the franchise and start a new one, perhaps with MTV's Rob Derdrek or Ryan Sheckler. Then you can ruin someone's gaming credibility OTHER than The Hawk's.
FINAL SCORE:
Tony Hawk's Project 8 (PS2, 360, GameCube, PSP)
Neversoft/Activision
Pros: New skaters, good graphics, realistic physics engine.
Cons: Removal of all good content, bad customization, goofy characters, limited choice in character selection at beginning.
Score: 2.5 out of 5.
Other new things are new pros to skate as, such as "My Name Is Earl", "Underdog", and "Alvin and the Chipmunks" star Jason Lee, skating out of semi-retirement to help the player during the second level. Unfortunately, the game takes a major departure from previous Tony Hawk titles in the fact that you can only play as 2 characters in free play at the games beginning (Tony Hawk and the Custom Skater), as opposed to being able to play as every pro AND Custom Skater like all the others. Speaking of, the Customization is very small and you have to choose between 3 presets: Punk, Urban Youth/Thug, and an 8 year old kid...or a midget...
My sister had a major problem in THAW to where she couldn't play as a girl in Story Mode due to the kiss at the end. She was further infuriated by the fact that you couldn't even make a female skater PERIOD in the Create-A-Skater option in Project 8. Oh, sure, you could play as a female Realtor, but that was about it, and still you had to complete the second level to get her.
Many hallmarks of the series have been removed for no reason other than "realism", chiefly Create-A-Park, which was my second favourite thing after character creation. The create a trick function introduced in THUG has been taken out, as has the "FREAK OUT!/Board Throwing" moves from THUG 2 and THAW. As a teen with severe anger management problems, this really pissed me off. I did my own FREAK OUT! move and chucked the game case into the rubbish bin.
There are MANY worse games you can get than Project 8, but I find it to be severely disappointing. It has nothing in common from the past games other than being the second-latest in the Tony Hawk brand, the newest being Proving Ground for the Wii, 360, PlayStations 2 and 3. If I ever get my Wii and get to try Proving Ground, I'll let you know how it stacks up. My current favourite games in the brand are Tony Hawk's Undergrounds 1 and 2. As Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw said, "I could say it appeals to die hard (*dubbed over*) [TONY HAWK] fans only, but I can't really recommend it to them either". My advice to Neversoft is to not fix which isn't broken, I guess. The past 3 titles where HUGE successes, and fans clamored for more of the same, but you had to get all real like EA Games' "skate." and dumped your loyal (usually drunk) user base in favour of the die-hard skate enthusiasts who demand realism. Either return future games to form or axe the franchise and start a new one, perhaps with MTV's Rob Derdrek or Ryan Sheckler. Then you can ruin someone's gaming credibility OTHER than The Hawk's.
FINAL SCORE:
Tony Hawk's Project 8 (PS2, 360, GameCube, PSP)
Neversoft/Activision
Pros: New skaters, good graphics, realistic physics engine.
Cons: Removal of all good content, bad customization, goofy characters, limited choice in character selection at beginning.
Score: 2.5 out of 5.
Friday, January 11, 2008
We come in peace.
Hope you all had a good Christmas and New Years. I got some new video games. So over the next few weeks you can expect some new reviews... But no promises.
Let's start off with BlackSite Area 51.
Let me just say that there is very little to complain about in this one. The story is pretty interesting, the weapons are fun (especially the default assault rife, but more on that later) and the gameplay manages to stay moderately interesting.
Campaign: The levels are definitely interesting. They sure don't repeat them self. The squad commands allow for a little strategy. How I wish I could send troops where I please in other games. Though your best bet is to just have them back you up while you charge through with your super awsome assault rifle. I will admit however that your AI companions are more competent than the ones in other games and actually manage to help you at times. The only thing I guess you could complain about is how every thing you need is extremely conveniently placed when you need it. Just as an example, there was a part where a giant alien thing called a spore tower landed and started spitting out alien squid-dogs and the only thing that could kill it were rockets. After a quick look around I found a fully-loaded rocket launcher. Well, at least it's easy to find ammo.
Weapons: The assault rifle in this game is the most balanced weapon (the gun itself is balanced) I have ever seen. Accurate enough to take out snipers and powerful as well. The pistol is very useful as well. Fast, accurate and can do alot of damage in the right hands. The sniper takes a little more skill than other guns. While useful it is the game gives you no extra clips. You can only carry two more clips at any time. These two factors combined make it so ammo is scarce. I did not use the plasma rifle very much. It takes about three shots to kill an enemy soldier, shoots really slow, only holds five shots to a clip and takes long to reload. I wouldn't recommend it. The spray gun is basically a shot gun. And according to an achievement I got called "Geometry Kills", the shots can bounce of a surface. So if you got your degree from smarty-pants university you can bounce shots to pull off kills from around the corner. Ten shots to a clip. A very fun weapon to play with. Finally the rocket launcher. The only use it has is when you need it.
This is one of those games that only like for campaign and have no interest in multiplayer. So I can't honestly review the multiplayer aspect of the game.
Well, thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
Let's start off with BlackSite Area 51.
Let me just say that there is very little to complain about in this one. The story is pretty interesting, the weapons are fun (especially the default assault rife, but more on that later) and the gameplay manages to stay moderately interesting.
Campaign: The levels are definitely interesting. They sure don't repeat them self. The squad commands allow for a little strategy. How I wish I could send troops where I please in other games. Though your best bet is to just have them back you up while you charge through with your super awsome assault rifle. I will admit however that your AI companions are more competent than the ones in other games and actually manage to help you at times. The only thing I guess you could complain about is how every thing you need is extremely conveniently placed when you need it. Just as an example, there was a part where a giant alien thing called a spore tower landed and started spitting out alien squid-dogs and the only thing that could kill it were rockets. After a quick look around I found a fully-loaded rocket launcher. Well, at least it's easy to find ammo.
Weapons: The assault rifle in this game is the most balanced weapon (the gun itself is balanced) I have ever seen. Accurate enough to take out snipers and powerful as well. The pistol is very useful as well. Fast, accurate and can do alot of damage in the right hands. The sniper takes a little more skill than other guns. While useful it is the game gives you no extra clips. You can only carry two more clips at any time. These two factors combined make it so ammo is scarce. I did not use the plasma rifle very much. It takes about three shots to kill an enemy soldier, shoots really slow, only holds five shots to a clip and takes long to reload. I wouldn't recommend it. The spray gun is basically a shot gun. And according to an achievement I got called "Geometry Kills", the shots can bounce of a surface. So if you got your degree from smarty-pants university you can bounce shots to pull off kills from around the corner. Ten shots to a clip. A very fun weapon to play with. Finally the rocket launcher. The only use it has is when you need it.
This is one of those games that only like for campaign and have no interest in multiplayer. So I can't honestly review the multiplayer aspect of the game.
Well, thanks for reading. This is the Blade, signing off.
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